Advertisement
Opinion | Hong Kong district council election: why weak middle class turnout is troubling
- The expanded constituencies mean candidates need to cover a large population, with those with deep connections to public housing estates having an advantage
- Candidates relying on middle-class support to win district council seats have been left disappointed
Reading Time:3 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
4
The district council elections held on December 10 under revamped rules completes the last piece of the political jigsaw which perfected the “patriots-only” governance structure. The Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office lauded the reshaped district councils as a key building block in keeping anti-China and anti-Hong Kong forces from participating in district organisations.
Advertisement
Among the many other compliments lavished on the elections, Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu praised the electoral outcomes for keeping those who would betray the interests of the country from participating.
In the eyes of the authorities, the reformed district council elections have successfully fulfilled their mission of ensuring political security. The government expressed satisfaction with the voter turnout of nearly 1.2 million people and the turnout rate of 27.5 per cent, not far below the voter turnout rate of 30.2 per cent of the similarly reconstituted Legislative Council elections in 2021.
A closer look at the voter turnout reveals a more unnerving picture about the new dynamics behind the elections. The first lesson learned is that numbers matter. District council constituencies had an average population of about 17,000 before the reform, while now the redrawn constituencies are as much as eight to 10 times larger.
For example, the new Hong Wan constituency on Hong Kong Island, covering the Quarry Bay and Shau Kei Wan areas, has a population of 187,331. It includes three public housing estates – Yiu Tung, Hing Tung and Hong Tung estates – which have more than 5,000, 2,000 and 500 units, respectively. That means the advantage lies with candidates who have deep connections with large numbers of public housing residents through painstaking services provided over the years.
Advertisement
One could say that is what mass democracy is about. In Hong Kong as well as elsewhere, such mass democracy comes with a potential price of populism and fiscal irresponsibility. Lower-income voters can often demand more welfare and cash handouts.
Advertisement